Thursday marks the end of this year’s regular session for the Alabama Legislature. With both the general fund and education budgets already passed, state legislators have three key issues remaining to be voted on – college tuition, bingo and the largest road building bill in Alabama history.
Both the House and the Senate have passed separate bills that would set aside $236 million to help save Alabama’s Prepaid Affordable College Tuition plan. The bills have one major difference, however. The House’s version would require state universities to cap tuition at 2.5 percent for those who signed a PACT contract, while the Senate version would not.
The difference has led to a stalemate on both sides, and UA professor emeritus Bill Stewart said that, although not legally bound to pass either bill, lawmakers have a moral obligation to pass one or the other.
“I would expect that, if the legislature doesn’t pass either bill, grieved parents would go to the state and federal courts to force the state to live up to what they feel is its legal obligation.”
Alabama’s bingo laws have been the most talked about and highly debated issue this session. If passed, the current bingo bill would call for a statewide vote to determine the legality of facilities throughout Alabama as well the rights to tax and regulate electronic bingo.
Gov. Bob Riley and Attorney General Troy King have taken public jabs at one another over the legality of electronic bingo, as well as the governor’s task force that raided bingo halls across the state.
“In my opinion, this proposed amendment – the so-called Sweet Home Alabama plan – is the biggest fraud ever perpetrated on the people of Alabama,” Riley said in a letter to legislative committees considering the gambling bill. “Whether you think gambling is good or bad for Alabama, this amendment is wrong on so many levels. If the legislature approves it, I will vote against it. And I will do everything in my power to expose this fraud and encourage every Alabamian to vote with me.”
King addressed the issue last Tuesday at a UA College Republicans meeting.
“There are right ways to address this and there are wrong ways to address this,” King said. “The rules have to be followed, and that’s not happening right now. It is my job to protect the people of Alabama.”
The proposed roads bill would provide $100 million from a state savings account to build better roads and bridges across the state over the next 10 years.
There is no end in sight for legislators as session comes to a close. Members of both the state House and Senate have reached the end of their four-year terms, and those seeking reelection will now head out on the campaign trail.
The past four years have not been the smoothest for legislators — four years that began with the passing of a bill granting lawmakers a 62 percent pay increase and ends with a federal investigation of attempted bribery.
Stewart said that their past four years in office have been a disappointment.
“Our lawmakers started off on very rocky footing when they voted themselves a pay raise to begin their terms,” Stewart said. “One time they had to go into special session because they couldn’t pass the education budget; a constitutional revision was never passed; a bill ending the state sales tax on groceries continues to die; the House always passes PAC to PAC transfers but it continues to die in the Senate.
“Lawmakers have really debated the bills but have been unable to resolve and reach compromises on them.”
Chris Sanders, policy analyst at Alabama Arise who was editor of The Crimson White from 2003-04, said that, as far as this year was concerned, that there were a few loose ends to tie up.
“The legislators made it through the best that they could on the budgets, but made no real efforts to pass items for the long-run,” Sanders said. “At some point, the hard decisions are going to have to be made – they’ve put them off for another year.”
